Bryan Leitch Named To ECAC Hockey Second Team

Mar 17, 2009

HAMDEN,
Conn.  Quinnipiac University men's ice hockey player Bryan
Leitch (Coquitlam, B.C.) today was named to the ECAC Hockey Second
Team, as announced by the league office. Leitch leads the nation in
points (59) and assists (47). Against ECAC Hockey teams, Leitch
also carries league-highs in both categories, 30 and 20
respectively, while earning three Player of the Week honors in
2008-09.

The
honor is the latest in a growing list of accolades for the senior
wing this season. Earlier this year, Leitch became just the third
player in ECAC Hockey history to win Player of the Week honors
three times in the same season. He was also named a candidate for
the prestigious Hobey Baker Memorial Award, given to the nation's
top college hockey player. He was recently announced as one of 16
players who will participate in the 2009 NCAA Frozen Four Skills
Competition in Washington, D.C. on April 10.

"For
his entire collegiate career, Bryan has been a dynamic offensive
player," head coach Rand Pecknold said. "He excels on the power
play and is one of the best I've ever coached in those
situations."

Leitch
enjoyed an impressive season offensively, breaking several
Quinnipiac records. His 47 assists in 2008-09 are the most for a
single season in Quinnipiac men's ice hockey history, while his 59
points this year are the most for the program at the Division I
level and third all-time. His 169 career points match Quinnipiac's
Division I scoring record, while his 116 career assists rank second
all-time at Quinnipiac.

He
was also the first player in the nation to reach the 40- and
50-point marks. In addition, he became the first Quinnipiac player
to lead NCAA Division I in scoring through the regular season.

In
39 games played this season, Leitch had multiple assists in 15 of
them. He set career-high marks in points against Union on Nov. 14
with three goals and two assists for five points. It was the first
of four consecutive games with two assists for Leitch heading into
the semester break. Against Merrimack at the Toyota UConn Hockey
Classic, Leitch passed out two assists before following that
performance with a three-assist game against nationally ranked, No.
11 Air Force in the tournament championship game. Leitch's five
points were a tournament-best, helping him to earn Most Valuable
Player honors as Quinnipiac defeated the Falcons for the
championship.

Against
Harvard on Jan. 2 and Dartmouth on Jan. 3, Leitch and teammate
Jean-Marc Beaudoin scored two goals apiece in both games, becoming
the first Quinnipiac players to each score twice in back-to-back
games. With a goal in his next game against Rensselaer, Leitch and
linemate David Marshall had scored a point in 12 consecutive games,
marking the longest concurrent scoring streaks in Quinnipiac's
Division I history. Leitch also chipped in with four assists
against Niagara, including three in the final period, to help
Quinnipiac to a come-from-behind win. He would finish the year with
four three-assist games in Quinnipiac's final 15 games.

Leitch
is the 26th player at the Division I level to collect
all-league honors for Quinnipiac and the sixth since the Bobcats
joined ECAC Hockey for the 2005-06 season. That season, Leitch was
named to the All-Rookie team while former Bobcat All-American Reid
Cashman was named to the ECAC Hockey First Team. The following
season, Cashman was named to the First Team again, while current
Bobcat junior Brandon Wong (Victoria, B.C.) was named to the
All-Rookie and Third Teams.